Guatemalan president vows to stay despite graft probe

Guatemalan President Otto Perez said Thursday he has no plans to resign despite being investigated for corruption and facing the possible lifting of his presidential immunity.

Perez, who has faced large protests calling for his resignation in recent weeks, was dealt a new blow Wednesday when the Supreme Court endorsed an opposition party's request to investigate how much he knew about fraud by senior officials in the customs and social security systems.

The court also asked Congress to consider lifting his immunity.

But Perez, a 64-year-old conservative and retired military officer, remained defiant.

"I am going to remain on the job. It is a constitutional responsibility," he told journalists.

"I am prepared to follow due process, but I am going to continue working right up to the last moment to serve the Guatemalan people," added Perez, who is not eligible for re-election when his four-year term ends in January.

"I am not at fault and I can feel at ease that I have not committed any crime."

The probe against Perez, to be conducted by a commission appointed by Congress, was requested by opposition party Winaq, founded by Nobel peace laureate Rigoberta Menchu.

The party launched the request after a UN-backed investigation aimed at cleaning up the Guatemalan judicial system reported in April that senior customs officials had taken bribes from businessmen seeking to avoid paying taxes.

In a separate scandal, the president of the Central Bank and the director of the Social Security system -- both of whom are close to Perez -- were arrested in May on charges of cheating the social security system out of $15 million.